5:2 Diet
cgangl1821
Posts: 34 Member
Has anyone had success with this? Is it just another weight loss fad?
0
Replies
-
Just to be clear, it is fasting two days a week, then the other five eating like normal. 500 calories on fast days for women, and 600 for men. I have issues with saying no to late night snacking and am hoping that this will help.0
-
Fast days have to be nonconsecutive though. So, say, on tuesday and thursday.0
-
They don't have to be consecutive actually, but obviously it's easier to get started with non consecutive fast days.
I know someone who lost 3 stones. I started 5:2 thus week, had my first fast day yesterday. I think the keys are:
- go as long as possible without eating. I made it to 4.30pm then had a slice of ham
- drink water, peppermint tea etc to fill up your stomach
- avoid carbs on fast days. Protein is your friend, as is soup. I ate that slice of ham, a hard boiled egg and 2 bowls of homemade lentil soup yesterday. Kept hunger at bay.
- go to bed early!! Makes the day go quicker ;-)0 -
On fast days. I can manage to have 3 small meals a day if i want to but never been a big breakfast eater so generally don't start eating until 4 so have a salad with protein when the kids have their dinner and my main meal between 8 and 9 because I can't go to bed early.lol.
as for eating normally, I would suggest tracking those calories as no matter what if you are eating well over maintenence 5 days a week, 2 fast days won't balance it out.0 -
It's just another way to manage calories, it's not a fad. The goal is to regulate your calories in a way that makes you comfortable. Some people do really well on it because during the rest of the week they don't feel restricted, others don't do well because daily restriction is easier for them. I use it sometimes but there is nothing magical about it. If you feel it's easier for you than restricting all week long then it's the diet for you, if you feel it's harder then it's not.0
-
I did this for a few months with good results. If you hate logging, or deal with occasional extreme deprivation better than constant low level deprivation (after all, you only need to hold out for one day) it's a good way to manage calories. There was a documentary on the BBC about different types of overeating and tailoring diets to different types of overeaters. The constant cravers, are people who are obsessive about food and are hungry all the time due to their genetic makeup. The 5:2 method was recommended for this type
http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/scotland/tv/rightdiet/constant_cravers.pdf
I stopped because I didn't like being preoccupied with food on my fast days.0 -
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/100058-5-2-fasting
If you're interested, come and join one of the groups on here. Lots of people have had success with it, though many have also found that it's not for them. That's OK, we're all different, a one-size-fits-all approach isn't good. Try it for a month and see how you feel about it.0 -
This will cause starvation mode in the body, you'll find once you eat carbs or starches your body will go into bindge mode. Self discipline will be a huge factor. A better alternative is portion control . Only eat 3/4 or 1/2 of ur normal portion and increase snacking on veggies, fruits and low sodium veggie soups or broths ! Your body will thank you aswell, your skin will look and feel incredible !0
-
Go to the communities around 5:2, do some reading and try it out for a few weeks, try it out and find out if it's for you. If it is great! If not there is no shame in trying something else.
Personally, I tried it for a week and it just wasn't for me, I don't deal well with being hungry (and my blood sugar fluctuated like crazy and made me tired and cranky)0 -
BiancaSumera wrote: »This will cause starvation mode in the body
No, "starvation mode" is a myth in this timeframe.otheliemoor wrote: »my blood sugar fluctuated like crazy and made me tired and cranky
It's much easier if you're "fat adapted" already and eating LCHF most of the time.
OP, I found it to be super-effective. Used it on my last cut in Nov-Dec. and lost ~15 pounds in a month and a half. Since then I've switched to maintenance which is 6:1, one full-day fast a week and that's going well too.
For what it's worth.0 -
I've done the 5:2 very successfully last year for a few weeks before going on holiday and now I'm starting my weight loss journey properly I'm using it to boost the loss along with a healthy diet and exercise the rest of the week. When you get creative it's amazing how much you can actually eat on 500 cals and to make sure I dont feel like I'm depriving myself I always make room for a big bowl of low cal jelly in the evenings which, depending on the brand, comes in at 10-20 cals.
Apart from the very first day I did it last year I've never felt real hunger and every time you do it it gets easier. And seeing the lbs literally drop off is amazing!0 -
Thank you everyone for your replies. I am going to give this a try and see how it goes. Fingers crossed that I have the same amazing results as everyone else! And it is good to know that the days don't have to be seaperated. One final question, what about exercise? Do you skip it or keep it as a short or light workout?0
-
Also, what if you accidently go over on a fast day? Would you just switch it to the next day or add in exercise to make up the difference?0
-
cgangl1821 wrote: »Also, what if you accidently go over on a fast day? Would you just switch it to the next day or add in exercise to make up the difference?
50 calories? no, 2000 calories? yes.
0 -
I'm pretty sure that the days are supposed to be non-consecutive.
As for the exercise part, that's gonna be trial and error. Some can get away with light exercise, some make that a rest day. Others eat an extra 100 calories.0 -
They don't "have" to be non-consecutive , it's just that it's preferable because it's easier for most people. Really, there are way less rules to this than people think. As for exercise, do them if you want don't do them if you don't feel up to it.I'm pretty sure that the days are supposed to be non-consecutive.
As for the exercise part, that's gonna be trial and error. Some can get away with light exercise, some make that a rest day. Others eat an extra 100 calories.0 -
BiancaSumera wrote: »This will cause starvation mode in the body, you'll find once you eat carbs or starches your body will go into bindge mode. Self discipline will be a huge factor. A better alternative is portion control . Only eat 3/4 or 1/2 of ur normal portion and increase snacking on veggies, fruits and low sodium veggie soups or broths ! Your body will thank you aswell, your skin will look and feel incredible !
You're trying to sound like you know science with your overuse of the word mode. There is no starvation mode and the human body isn't so fragile that one day of no carbs will force you into 'binge mode' once you resume. I wouldn't ever do 5:2 (more than happy with macros control eating at times to suit me), but if you're going to speak out against 5:2, at least don't use bro-science or make up terms.0 -
cgangl1821 wrote: »Also, what if you accidently go over on a fast day? Would you just switch it to the next day or add in exercise to make up the difference?
You don't eat back exercise calories on a fast day.
Don't get too hung up on being ultra precise - that's just adding unnecessary stress. The 500 or 600 fast day limit just comes from an approximation of a quarter of an average daily intake.
I actually find 650 calories easy and 600 calories extremely restrictive - just not worth the aggravation for 50 calories.
By the way when it first came out the days were supposed to be non-consecutive but that recommendation later got dropped.0 -
I've done it, it works and I plan to go back to it soon once I'm off some meds which need to be taken with food
0 -
BiancaSumera wrote: »This will cause starvation mode in the body, you'll find once you eat carbs or starches your body will go into bindge mode.
Sorry but this is completely ludicrous!0 -
cgangl1821 wrote: »Also, what if you accidently go over on a fast day? Would you just switch it to the next day or add in exercise to make up the difference?
It depends how much over like Agent Orange said avove!
- switch to the next day if it's massive
- carry on as normal if it's minimal
- eat not at a fast level but at a deficit the following day if it's moderate0 -
I never sweat it if I go over by anything up to 100. Even then you're still way, way under the recommended cals so it's really not going to be much of a difference. Also I wouldn't recommend doing it on consecutive days at first. Let your body (and your mind - it's all in the mind!) get used to it first for a few weeks and if you feel like you could manage it then give it a shot. I wouldn't make it a regular thing though cause although in the morning when you start the fast tomorrow seems ages away, it's there before you know it and that keeps you going in the beginning when it's tough0
-
Wonderful advice everyone, thank you. Today is my first fast day, and I did join the group for 5:2. It looks like I will be keeping myself massivly busy to keep my mind off of food. Lol. Tea sounds like a wonderful alternative to help keep my mind off of it. Day 1 is always the hardest. I do like how flexable this is. ☺0
-
cgangl1821 wrote: »Wonderful advice everyone, thank you. Today is my first fast day, and I did join the group for 5:2. It looks like I will be keeping myself massivly busy to keep my mind off of food. Lol. Tea sounds like a wonderful alternative to help keep my mind off of it. Day 1 is always the hardest. I do like how flexable this is. ☺
Here is another alternative: if you like cocoa in your coffee, a packet of splenda and you're done for 20 calories. The richness of cocoa and caffeine in coffee should keep hunger at bay for a couple of hours0 -
Jodes18
This is the thread I was referring to
0 -
I am not a coffee person, but hot chocolate might be a good substatute....I will have to check. Thanks for the idea amusedmonkey.0
-
Dum Question just wondering
Can I create a deficit with exercise 2 days a week, I can burn around 700 + cals (hrm) so if I consume 1,300 gross at the end it i'll be 600 net or so, the rest of my week will be "normal" eating 1/2 or more of my exercise included, but I burn something around 400, 4 days
I'm bad at restricting
Do you think it will work?0 -
Dumb duh0
-
To lose 10 lbs, I'm already at a healthy weight 138, 5'4" 0
-
Dum Question just wondering
Can I create a deficit with exercise 2 days a week, I can burn around 700 + cals (hrm) so if I consume 1,300 gross at the end it i'll be 600 net or so, the rest of my week will be "normal" eating 1/2 or more of my exercise included, but I burn something around 400, 4 days
I'm bad at restricting
Do you think it will work?
If you are bad at restricting this may not be the diet for you. For weight loss you can try any variation of anything, really. What you suggested wouldn't be the fast diet, but it may just be what fits you. As long as you burn more calories than you consume you will lose weight regardless of what strategies you choose. Keep in mind even heart rate monitors are not an accurate measure for burn if you aren't doing something steady like running or walking, they also don't exclude the calories you would have burned just by staying alive, so your 700 calorie burn may actually be 600 or less.0
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 393.1K Introduce Yourself
- 43.7K Getting Started
- 260.1K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.9K Food and Nutrition
- 47.4K Recipes
- 232.5K Fitness and Exercise
- 419 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.5K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 152.9K Motivation and Support
- 8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.7K MyFitnessPal Information
- 23 News and Announcements
- 1.1K Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.5K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions